“I am, which I guess tells me that it was time. Do I miss the game? Sure I do. I miss the guys, I miss the competitive, I don’t know if you would call it edge or spirit or whatever the term may be, I miss that every week. I don’t miss the between the games during the week, it got very monotonous for me. I also don’t miss the stress to perform at a high level week in and week out, because that just became so draining. And I know it’s impossible to perform at the top tier week in and week out. I know I was fortunate to do that for the better part of my career. So there’s nothing to look back and say ‘boy, if I had just done this or I had just done that.’ I’d be a fool if I didn’t think I’d miss the camaraderie, being with the guys, there’s nothing like being in that locker room after a great win,a hard fought win, or bouncing back from a tough loss the following week, there’s nothing like that, there’s no way I can replace that feeling. But, I’ll be 42 next week, I’ve got a grandson, I’ve got two beautiful daughters, the youngest daughter is playing basketball. I enjoy working out here on my property. So there’s a lot to keep me occupied. That’s not to say one day I’ll become bored. We all become bored at some point with whatever we do. But I’ve got this philosophy right now to kind of just take everything as it comes, don’t get hurried, there’s no reason to and just enjoy life.”

Did he ever reflect back on his past two years in Minnesota and think he made a mistake by coming back:

“Well you know what Mike? I won’t lie to you, there has been times, not anymore, but there has been times once that season started — numerous times — that I thought I shouldn’t have played, this was a mistake. But then after the season was over, and maybe even before — I think the last couple of games which I didn’t play in, and it’d been years since I hadn’t played and watched from the sidelines, better yet in street clothes, that was the first time I’d ever done that – but it gave me a chance to really reflect and look around. There was no pressure to perform. I was just kind of watching. So I had a chance to really think and think in depth. And to be honest with you, I didn’t regret coming back at that point. There were time during the season prior to those games where I did. But I guess I did finally get to that point, and I can only assume that had I not gone back as we’re sitting here today, I maybe you, maybe other people would wonder, what if I had gone back? Would the team have been different? I don’t know how they would have ended up. They may have been the same without me, maybe a little better, maybe a little worse. I don’t know. But there’s the problem. We don’t know. So if I needed an exclamation point on my career, two years ago would have been a great time to walk away. I don’t think anyone wouldn’t have been able to say ‘hey, the guy’s got something left in his tank, he probably could have played another year.’ Well, you know, we know now. If anything this past year was the answer that I’d been looking for.”

If he’d agree with Jerry Glanville’s comments that he did Favre a favor by allowing him to leave Atlanta when he did early on in his career:

“You know, I have to agree with Jerry. And at the time, no one including Brett Favre would have thought my career would have ended up the way he did. As a young boy, I was no different, maybe even more dreams and aspirations than the normal Joe. My goals were pretty high. But I have to be honest, they were not as high as they ended up being. So actually, I’m one of the few people who can say that my actual career and performance were greater than my dreams had been. So man, I just find it hard to believe that it could have been any better, more likely not as good, had I stayed in Atlanta.”

If he’s disappointed looking back on his career that he was only able to win that one Super Bowl so early on in his career:

“It was disappointing to never win one game, but as you’re playing it’s always ‘next year’ or ‘this year’, ‘this is the year’. So, once it’s over you go, well that wasn’t the case. Yeah we came close several times after, went to the Super Bowl the following year. You know, it is hard to repeat, but then again it’s not. A lot of factors have to play into it — obviously health from an overall team standpoint is important, the nucleus of the team coming back is important (did you lose a lot of guys?), and I think most importantly, do you still with the same passion and hunger that you did prior to winning the Super Bowl. If you have those in place, you have a pretty good shot. So it was disappointing to never go back aside from that following year, although we were close. But my career is very, very rewarding to me. So I have no regrets, and really the disappoint I feel at times is very normal, if any. Because again, I think about those dreams I had as a kid, and to think I’m sitting here now and I’ve far exceeded those dreams is quite an accomplishment.”

What he was thinking watching Aaron Rodgers lead the Packers to Super Bowl glory last year:

“I’m going to be honest, I was not surprised. The biggest surprise to me would be that he didn’t do it sooner. It’s funny how people can get over time, my last year in Green Bay prior to the first game, I made the remark that this was probably the most talented team that I’ve ever played on. And of course everyone looked up and was like ‘this guy’s off his rocker.’ We were very, very young; take me out of the mix and we were by far the youngest team in the league. But I could see the talent pool across the board was outstanding. Now our season kind of ended up being a reflection of that. We came close, and I think we took a lot of people by surprise, but guys emerged rather quickly. Aaron had a chance…even though the last couple years it’s seemed like he’s almost a rookie, he’s been around awhile. And I’d like to think that he watched, he learned, and then when he got a chance to play, he brought in his ability which is obviously very good or they wouldn’t have drafted him in the first round. He’s got tremendous talent, he’s very bright and he got a chance to watch and see successful teams do it right. And so he just kind of fell into a good situation. On top of that, he’s a good player. I don’t think there’s any pressure on him now, the talent around him is even better than when I was there. So I’m really kind of surprised it took him so long. In the early part of last year season, it hadn’t quite clicked yet and I didn’t know it would. I just kind of figured when they hit their stride, they’re going to be hard to beat. And that’s what happened.”

So how long will it take for Brett to mature and mellow? His final comments on this interview seem to suggest that he realizes that he isn't quite there yet - at least in terms of becoming a regular football commentator. But when he does develop that bit of egoic mellowness, that is still somewhat lacking, my guess is he will be one heck of a sports media performer.

Ha! To be perfectly honest, I sort of expected more flamed-out responses to this by now. Since there aren't any, I'll just assume that everyone completely agrees with me and that I'm right....also that I'm good looking.

But, right or wrong, I was compelled to write and check this page not once but multiple times. Nagler doesn't make it a secret that he needs page views and did post this to do it. He was so frank he called it out by saying "you freak out".

Maybe you and I didn't freak out. We still wanted to comment on this...

I thought he was simply paying Aaron Rodgers a compliment, there. I don't see him knocking ARodg for not winning sooner, what I got from it was basically: "I think Aaron Rodgers is a great quarterback on a well assembled team, and that he was capable to win one right out of the gate." Not that he didn't get the job done sooner, but good for them and it would've been no surprise if they HAD done it earlier.

I honestly think that he was trying to compliment Rodgers, but because his ego is so big and he's still feeling wounded by the Packers, it couldn't help but come out as more of a back-handed compliment.

The best thing about all this is that Aaron Rodgers gets to write the final verses of this Ode. For my money, when the ranking of greatest Packer quarterbacks is made at some point in the not too distant future there will be no question that Bart Starr and Aaron Rodgers stand clearly apart from the rest. Personally I hope Aaron writes many more verses!

If you wanted to go out on a limb and take everything at full value (not the best idea, but whatever), that he honestly is surprised that Rodgers took so long to win a Super Bowl with what Favre called 'the most talented team he ever played on', then the conclusion is this: Favre holds talented teams back.

He made the same 'most talented team I ever played for' comment about the '09 Vikings and they came up short in an almost identical situation as the '07 Packers. Favre got his Super Bowl and trio of MVPs but, if you take his opinion, when he plays for ultra-talented teams, you can't trust that he'll enable them to perform up to their ceiling—and not hold them back.

Totally agree w/ Colin. I always thought Brett had one more Super Bowl in him. His "Giants Game" loss his last year with the Pack and his Vikings loss are tough legacies to ignore. Further proof might be Desmond Howard being the MVP of Brett's only SB win.

You know, I loved Favre and thought he walked on water back in the day. But Rodgers is head and shoulders better than him, and when his career is all done there will be no arguing that fact. He's a better decision maker, he has just as or even more accurate, he's better decision maker, he has almost as strong of an arm, he's a better decision maker, he studies the game instead of partying, he's a better decision maker, he's more athletic and mobile and he's a better decision maker.

While I agree with most of your statements on Rodgers' when compared to Farkle, you shouldn't discount the fact that there is a sizable (Albeit not very vocal) section of the Packers' fan base that believes Rodgers is a better decision maker than brINT.

I don't see why people are freaking out over what Favre is saying in this interview about Rodgers. Everything he said is the complete truth. People are acting as though he's being passive-aggressive, but how do you explain this portion:

"And I’d like to think that he watched, he learned, and then when he got a chance to play, he brought in his ability which is obviously very good or they wouldn’t have drafted him in the first round. He’s got tremendous talent, he’s very bright and he got a chance to watch and see successful teams do it right. And so he just kind of fell into a good situation. On top of that, he’s a good player."

Those don't sound like the words of a man with sour grapes. He calls Rodgers tremendously talented and very bright, and is 100% right when he says he got a chance to watch and see successful teams. What's so wrong about any of that?

I hope people stop freaking out every time they see the words "Brett Favre" soon, because the sooner we as Packers fans welcome him back into the family, the better it is for everybody.

Yep, people are freaking out. Look at them freaking out. They must be freaking out because Nagler wrote the words "freak out" in his condescending post title. Or maybe they're just noting a continued lack of respect from Favre re: Rodgers, in a thread posted specifically to solicit comments.

What context do I need? I listened to the interview, I read the transcript. Am I missing some secret Brett Favre decoder ring that you seem to have? I realize that Favre has been known to give some backhanded barbs in the past, but there's nothing here that seems to suggest that this isn't a legitimate compliment. Instead of attacking me, please at least explain what exactly is so inflammatory about anything that Favre said here.

Well, if you're a troll, you're a damn good one. If you're not, I really have a hard time figuring how you can't see the blalant backhanded compliment.

“And I’d like to think that he watched, he learned, and then when he got a chance to play, he brought in his ability which is obviously very good or they wouldn’t have drafted him in the first round. He’s got tremendous talent, he’s very bright and he got a chance to watch and see successful teams do it right. And so he just kind of fell into a good situation. On top of that, he’s a good player.”

You can't see the way Favre is speaking? When he emphasises that Rodgers got to sit and watch behind HIM (despite he never actually helping him at all), and how Rodgers got a really talented team, but simply introduces points of Rodgers having merit in all that, he's saying Rodgers was but an afterthought in his own championship, that if not for the conditions in which Rodgers entered the league, and, subsequently, because of what Favre himself did, Rodgers would not have been where he is.

As a practicing lawyer who writes shades of truth for a living, it's as clear as day his intentions in this interview, just with the way it's all structured. And it's brilliantly structured.

Haha, well I'm certainly not a troll. I just am not one of the people who sees the name "Brett Favre" and automatically goes into attack mode... at least, not any more. With all due respect, I think you are letting your predisposition toward Favre affect your judgment of what he's actually saying in this interview.

That excerpt you pulled out... again, is there anything at all that's wrong about that? Whether Favre has hidden motives behind saying it or not, it's still the truth. He DID watch and learn which helped him in his preparation. He acknowledges the talent the Packers saw in making him a first-round pick. And then he proceeds in complimenting Rodgers further.

Of course he was sitting behind "HIM"... what, do you want him to say he was learning from Craig Nall? It's no secret that Rodgers was being groomed behind Favre, so what makes it so wrong or big-headed of him to say it? It's the absolute truth. Rodgers DID get a really talented team... I don't get it, are you denying that? As for your bit about him implying Rodgers was an afterthought in his own championship... lol, I think you're reading way too far into things here, bud.

In the end, it doesn't matter. The only person who really knows what Favre thinks is Favre. But in reading and listening to this interview, I see nothing to suggest that this was some masterwork of passive-aggressiveness. Settle down brother, old man Favre isn't the Satan you're making him out to be.

Let's put it this way. If your wife or girlfriend put on 50 pounds, and asked you if she was sexy, what would've happened if you answered "honey, you're still great at cooking, and when it's dark I'm still very attracted to you"?

There's nothing here that I don't "get," I mean I can understand why you think that Favre is being backhanded here, given that he's proven it to be in his nature in the past. I just think. in this instance, you're wrong ;)

It's a dick move to backhandedly compliment someone with a ton of qualifiers. If Rodgers said something about Favre winning his superbowl, he wouldn't be a dick about it and add that he inherited a tremendously talented team and imply he was in the right place at the right time. And that's why we like him better.

It's nice to hear from you. Glad to see you've recovered from that embarrassing "situation" and that you've found a job. Are you still sleeping on the couch?

We're doing ok in Green Bay, so thanks for checking in. We're actually the reigning World Champions and we're 4-0 this year, best in the league. Our Super Bowl MVP quarterback, your replacement, accounted for 6 TDs last week. Yes, as you put it, he's "a good player."

And did you see what Ted's been up to?? OMG, he re-signed James Jones AND Jordy Nelson and drafted this young fella, Randall Cobb. It's all very exciting. Please give our best to your lovely wife, we don't know how she does it! LOL, jk!

I honestly think he was being complimentary to Aaron. And he is right, Rodgers did fall into a good situation. The team had made the NFC Championship game just a few months prior to the 2008 season, so they obviously had the talent to make it into the playoffs. Rodgers couldn't have asked for a better team to become the quarterback of. IMO

And I didn't see where Favre blamed Rodgers for losing that playoff game against the Cardinals. Whoever saw that is adding 2+2 and coming up with 5. Don't put words in the man's mouth. Nor did I see where Favre blamed anyone for his playoff losses in that trasncript.

Why does everyone have to put their own spin on what Favre means when he says something. It's too easy to twist words into meaning something else when that happens. Just take them at face value.

Agree with Shannon. I don't get the negative interpretation.
Rodgers has said he is in a good situation.
Time to let go of the hostility. BF contributed a great deal to the success and fun of past teams.
This is a nex era, an exciting one to watch. We can enjoy it all.

I'm going to focus on the "surprised it took so long" comment because that was the most obvious shot at Rodgers.

2008 -- first year as a starter. Not many first year starting QBs win a super bowl that year.

2009 -- went to the playoffs, but defense hadn't put the puzzle together yet and still lacked that 3rd corner.

2010 -- first real complete team with Rodgers and they win it all with a boat load of injuries. I'm shocked he won it so soon.

He can't get over the fact that his replacement may very well be the better qb and the front office that didn't beg for him to come back may have been right all along. So to clear his own mind he tells himself that he would have won the super bowl with this group sooner then Rodgers.

Wasn't Favre starting for 5 years before winning it? I though he took over in early 1992 and won it after the 1996 season. They both had been in the league six years, but Favre had started a lot more games (I think).

If you consider that he only started a full season in 93, then it's the same.

But you're right, if you count from his first start, then it's more time.

I remember a comparison that some network did a while ago, that showed Favre and Rodgers with the same number of starts, I believe they had won the same number of games, but Rodgers' stats were so much better.

It does seem like a bit of a backhanded compliment - yeah, Aaron is really talented, and he fell into a good situation with more talent than I ever had, so much so that I'm surprised it took him this long to win it all. But honestly, even if he came out and said, "Aaron's the greatest QB I've ever seen play," we would all mock him for his insincerity because we're all still that wounded.

Actually, I would've believed him. I would've thought that he matured and finally understood what really happened. But no, Favre couldn't just let us go back to being a little delusional, he just had to go out there and just shout to the world just how little he is.

And Brett had a shitty situation his first year starting for the Packers. Reggie White. Santana Dotson. Sterling Sharpe. That team was just not built to win. :-) Seriously, I think that the interview was not that bad.

I think the point is if he would have just said something like "I'm not surprised at all. Rodgers is a good quarterback on a good team....I'm happy for him and the Packers!"

With a statement like that, there is no room for controversy. With statements like that there may be some day he can actually walk into Lambeau to a few cheers instead of loud boos to get his jersey retired. But he won't do it. He won't toe the Packers company line. And until he does, or if he does, he will never be overwhelmingly accepted by most Packer fans. Whether he cares or not.

Unfortunately, controversies such as Rodgers v Favre are inevitable. Montana and Young went through the same thing. Unless Rodgers gets hurt, he's gonna get pushed out by the next in line, and he's not gonna go down quietly. Anyone who thinks Rodgers is shy on ego is oblivious.

I love how you guys call yourselves Packer fans but try to trash the man who brought us back to the top. Remember before he got here no one wanted to come to Green Bay. So shut up and thank the guy. Ya he went to the rival but those 2 years mean nothing compared to what he's done for Green Bay. Not only for the Packers but for the whole city, just look at all the charity work he and Deanna have done for the city. Without Brett, Reggie White never comes to the Packers. Hell the Packers would be the Cleveland Browns if Ron Wolf never would've brought Brett here. So let's love what Aaron is doing now with this team but thank Brett for giving him the opportunity to have a great team around him.

The fissure between you and I was caused by Brett Favre and his clan. Maybe your one of them, who knows. His departure was clearly orchestrated by he and his agent to divide loyalties of Packer fans against the team's management. I said thank you in the spring of 2007.

I'm pretty sure Brett is trying hard to be complimentary here. But most of his compliments are always qualified. He's tremendously talented BUT he had more talent around him than me. He had lots of innate talent BUT he got better from watching me. Not sure what to make about his Rodgers being a rookie but having been around for three years, but it can't be a compliment. Finally, the last two comments about him falling into a good situation and there not being any pressure around him, can't say I agree with him, but they were made to make Rodgers' achievements less impressive. As for the good situation, it was good because of the players that TT had drafted and McC was coaching, but we cannot ignore the incredible venom that Rodgers taking over from Favre created among the fans. And he was a pretty young player with practically no experience as a starter. Doesn't seem like such a great situation from where I'm standing. As for the lack of pressure, there has been, is and always will be a lot of pressure when you play for a team like GB, when you replace a legendary QB like Brett and when you play at the level Rodgers is playing.
My 2 cents . . .

It's amazing to me how fast you people can turn on one of the greatest players to ever wear the Green and Gold. Face it, the conditions under which he left Green Bay weren't ideal. Was he forced out; of course he was! Was it time to move on; of course it was! Could it have been handled better by both sides; definitely but it wasn't. Aaron was the reason he was treated the way he was so if there are sour grapes (I don't think there are) so what. I still love him and hope he goes into the hall as a Packer.

Favre's answer on Rodgers was definitely a back-handed compliment. There's a lot of truth to what he's saying about Rodgers and the packers, but it's obvious he can't comment on them without a passive-aggressive defense of his legacy. The best thing about that Super Bowl was everyone forgot about him and the mess that was created in 2008-2010. Favre can't see it now, but their Super Bowl win was his ticket back into titletown. If he just toned it down a bit on the ego-centric comments, fans would eventually welcome him back in open arms.

He's right in the sense that Rodgers came into a good situation talent-wise, but Rodgers couldn't have come into a more difficult situation in other respects. Having to follow up BLF, with #4 being cold towards him when they were together, some vocal fans actively hating on Rodgers, and then BLF hissy-fitting his way to MN. Many QBs would have wilted under that microscope.

Aaron: Absolutely brilliant headline. I've been chuckling at it all afternoon. How can anyone take it badly when it was so spot on? I for one, am FREAKING OUT!!!

Where we sit determines what we see...and this Farveapolosa shows it almost as well as anything politcal that hits this page on occasion. If you think Brent's evil, everything he does is evil. If you love him everything he does is above reproach. We can look at the same thing and see totally different things. He is both Goofus and Gallant at the same time. Goofus gets handed the keys to the city and bites the hand that feeds him...Gallant resurects a storied franchise and gets bupkis for his troubles.

I just think he was great fun to watch, he brought me some of the greatest sports moments of my life, but he is overall a bear of very little brain. These beliefs help the cognative dissonance.

As a Packer fans, I loved Brett, but you lived and died with him. When he left I was hoping for the Montana/Young thing, and I must say I am happy with the new QB. As for Brett, enjoy retirement, see you in 9 years when I retire!

I think the article reinforces how great Ted Thompson is. He saw that Favre could not lead a team to a Super Bowl anymore and made a difficult decision to trade him. It allowed Rodgers to go through the growing pains to win in the playoffs and eventually the Super Bowl.

How many playoff games do you remember against Dallas that started with overthrown passes because our young QB was to excited?

Subtext: "I was pissed off at Ted Thompson for drafting Aaron Rodgers with the #1 pick and felt threatened by Rodgers once he arrived in Green Bay, so I didn't give the jerk the time of day or try to mentor him like a better person would have. I am and always will be the greatest player in Packers history."

I think it's interesting that Favre talked about how talented the team is that Rodgers is on. Just who assembled that team? Logically, Brett has to concede that Rodgers is elite (not just "really good"), Thompson is a damn good GM or both.

That's a good point. Any slight of Rodgers kinda becomes essentially a compliment of Thompson, even if unintended.

I think people are reading too much into this though, most likely. We all know how Favre is with the media. He wants to talk, and talk, but sometimes doesn't have a lot to say. You get the winding, rambling filibusters and he usually ends up being a little self-contradictory somewhere along the way.

This is what he does - always been that way. People latch on to bits and pieces and take it to mean whatever they want it to mean, when all it usually means is that Brett Favre likes to talk.

I think he's had WAY too long to stew on his humble pie. I think this statement was deliberate and intended to be backhanded. He continually tried to soften it a bit by saying "he's obviously talented." Well, duh. But Rodgers is clearly more than just "talented." He's a future hall of famer. He's arguably playing better than Brady. Throwing out the "he's surrounded with talent" is a wonderful way to say "if I had that talent, I would have done the same." Brett's a narcissist.

Frankly, I thought this before 2008. It was hardly a popular opinion then. And it really wasn't accepted until after he left the JETS.

Even when Bert tries to give a compliment he always compares things to himself. He is the ultimate narcissist. What I don't get is how dumb he is at the same time. If he would set aside his ego just for a month Bart could win back Packer fans and could have a career on NFL network or something. As the years go by TT will be proved right for letting him go. Just like TT will be prove right for letting J. Finley go because he isn't a team player. Bye, bye Farve.

I didn't hear anything underhanded or backhanded with regard to Fauvre's interview. I enjoyed it quite a bit. This is an interview with Fauvre in which the host is asking him his opinions and how things were for him when he won his SB. It was all perfectly legitimate, sensible, reasonable. Thanks for the link. People need to get over this shit.

The entire history of Favre's relationship with Rodgers is brutal. Aside from some passing moments where to two essentially were able to "coexist", this relationship was ice cold from the beginning. Favre should have been the first to congratulate Rodgers on the SB victory. Nothing.

Even if that history wouldn't shed a light on these comments, this commentary is DRIPPING with spite. C'mon, man. I'm not saying you have to hate Favre, but he's hardly made it a secret that he has no use for A-Rod. People aren't wrong for seeing this statement for what it is.

Everyone can see here Brett has a big ego! Brett's afraid that Aaron is going to bring more Lombardi Trophies back to Green Bay! Aaron Rodgers is going to out Super Bowl and out legend the Legend! Steve Young couldn't do it. Rodgers will!

I didn't take too much out of what he said. I believe he was sincerely trying to be complimentary of Rodgers and the Packers. It's just that he's a pompous, arrogant prick. He's always been that way, but we the fans with the rose colored glasses, couldn't see it when he was our arrogant prick. We loved his bluster and bravado. They say time heals all wounds, and I hope it does. I'm not too fond of "what's his name" right now, but would hate even worse, him being enshrined as a VIQUEEN! That is all.

Well, he's had a rough few years here. Farve has had to sit on the sidelines last year with the Vikings and watch someone else throw the passes on the field. He's had to watch his once sure-fire "passes" off the field turn into fodder for tabloids and threats of lawsuits. I think bankruptcy is the next logical step, though unlikely, unless Diana dumps him and he goes back to the drugs.

Brett you lived the life. The higher you go, the further you have to fall. Welcome to being ordinary Brett, like the rest of us. Hope you can handle being ordinary better than you handled being on top of the world.

Quote

"I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious."